Alessi Sottsass Condiment Set

alessi sottsass condiment set

5 piece condiment set in polished steel, designed by Ettore Sottsass. Set includes oil, vinegar, salt and pepper with tray.

Born in Innsbruck, Ettore Sottsass is known around the world as one of the initiators of the revolution in architecture and design which led away from rigid functionalism. A great and influential master of Italian design, the energy of his language and the vitality of his color and line contrast sharply with any intellectualism and rigidity.

Ettore Sottsass (b. 1917) of Innsbruck, Austria grew up in Milan with an architect for a father. He graduated from Politecnico di Torino in 1939 with a degree in architecture. He served in the Italian military and spent much of World War II in a concentration camp in Yugoslavia In 1981, Sottsass came together with other young designers and architects to form the Memphis Group, who were hailed as one of the most characteristic examples of Post-modernism in design and the arts. Sottsass was simultaneously assembling Sottsass Associati, primarily an architectural practice now based in Londan and Milan. Sottsass had a vast body of work: furniture, jewelry, ceramics, glass, silver work, lighting, office machine design and buildings which inspired generations of architects and designers.

Alessi was founded in 1921 by Giovanni Alessi to produce crafted metal products for eating and drinking. In 1935, Carlo Alessi, son of Giovanni, was named chief designer. In 1945, he ascended to chief executive and designed the coffee service Bombé, an industrial piece manufactured in four sizes. That same year Carlo's younger brother, Ettore Alessi, joined the company as a technician. By the 1980s, Alberto Alessi took over the management of Alessi and launched the Alessi company into the design decade through collaborations with designers such as Philippe Starck and his playful three-legged Juicy Salif citrus squeezer.